Good Soil, Manure, Compost and Nourishment for your Garden

Soil health is vital to our existence on earth and a topic that gardeners worldwide are interested in. Manure might be dirty, disgusting and smelly, but it’s manure that maximizes your garden, whatever you grow in it.

Good Soil, Manure, Compost and Nourishment for your Garden” is already a bestseller in Sweden, Norway and Germany and now UK gardeners can get a copy of this in-depth book by authors Tina Råman, Ewa-Marie Rundquist and Justine Lagache.

This has to be one of the most extensive books dealing with this important topic I have seen. It doesn’t look like a typical gardening book (perhaps one of its greatest strengths) but it’s a book that everyone interested in gardening needs. I can certainly see why it has been a bestseller – the layout is lively and energetic, the subject is covered thoroughly and there are plenty of tips and masses of inspiration.

As the authors point out, the main challenge is to make the subject of manure as simple and comprehensive as possible, without being too superficial about it and then pressing home the information in an appealing way. They have certainly achieved that and what makes the book more interesting is the fact that they lift the lid on old and reliable fertilization methods as well as opening the doors to new resource-efficient and environmentally-smart cultivation techniques.

I love the way this book is illustrated – you want to look inside, browse, learn and discover. Chapters deal with Biology, Soil, Chemistry, Philosophy, Nourishment, Methods and Plants. There are also guest features throughout the book, such as the ones by Lars Krantz, a garden visionary with a feeling for soil and Goran and Margaretha Hoas, who talk about Gourmet Demands.

The book covers an amazing variety of soil nourishment and enhancement including using horse manure, sheep and goat manure, chicken manure and homemade liquid fertilizers. All kinds of horticultural needs, from growing fruit and vegetables to flowers, are covered. So whether you want to use use grass and weeds as nutrient boosters, know more about watering or need to get to grips with Mulching, ‘Good Soil’ will certainly provide the answers.

Yes, the book has a Swedish bias but soil needs the same care wherever you find it and I found the Swedish expertise both refreshing and interesting.

Good Soil, Manure, Compost and Nouirishment for your Garden’ by Tina Råman, Ewa-Marie Rundquist and Justine Lagache is published by Frances Lincoln, March, 2017, in hardback at £20.00.